Draft appliance for railway-cars.



PATBNTBD N07. 15, 1904.

W. H. MINER. DRAFT APPLIANCE FOR RAILWAY CARS.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 27. 1904.

N0 MODEL.

INVENTOR. m/fiam HflY/hPri figi 22/15 W/T/VESSES; N 1,

6/5 ATTORNEYS UNITED STATES Patented November 15, 1904-.

PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM H. MINER, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO IV. H. MINER COMPANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

DRAFT APPLIANCE FOR RAILWAY-CARS- SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 775,278, dated November 15, 1904.

Application filed August 27, 1904.

To all w/Lmn it nuty concern.-

Be it known that I, IVILLIAM H. MINER, a citizen of the United States, residing in Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illi- 5 nois, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Draft Appliances for Railway- Cars, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in draft appliances for railroad-cars.

Heretofore in the railway draft appliances commonly in use the couplerhas usually been constructed with a long integral draw bar or shank, to the-rear end of which is rigidly secured by rivets a draw-bar extension, strap, or yoke,which surrounds or incloses the draftsprings and followers which reciprocate between and are supported and guided by the upper and lower flanges or guides of the side plates orstop-castings, which are secured to the 2 car-frame. In this construction the springs and followers of the draft-rigging are necessarily arranged at quite a considerable distance from the front end or sill of the car, and the rigid draw-bar and draw-bar extension of the coupler are necessarily of great length, especially in draft-rigging of the tandem type employing two or more springs arranged in tandem or longitudinally,one behind another, and often the space between the front tran- 3 som or body-bolster and the end of the car is scarcely long enough to properly accommodate the draft-rigging, and difficulty is also experienced, owing to the great length of the draft appliances, especially of the tandem type, in so combining the coupler and its draft-rigging with the frame of the car as to enable the coupler to have the necessary lateral or horizontally-swinging movement to permit the cars coupled together in a train to pass 4 around curves without subjecting the couplers to severe lateral or binding strains, tending to disengage the couplers or to break the coupler or draft-rigging or wrench or disengage the same from the car.

The object of my invention is to provide a draft appliance of a strong, simple, and durable construction, by which all these objections or difliculties may be practically overcome and which will materially reduce the Serial No. 222,603. (No model.)

cost or expense of the draft appliance as a 5 whole, as well as its, length, and the room or space necessary to accommodate it on the carframe and by which the springs and followers of the draft-rigging may be brought near to the front end of the car or directly adjacent to the front sill of the car-frame, thus materially increasing the compactness and strength and efficiency of the draft appliance as a whole.

My invention consists in the means I employ to practically accomplish this object or result-that is to say, it consists, in connection with the car-frame or the center sills or draft timbers or sills thereof, of a pair of side plates or stop-castings secured thereto, having the customary stops or shoulders for the 5 followers to abut against and provided at their front ends each with a rounded guide or bearing extending to the front end of the car and engaginga rearwardly-extcnding pivot ear or lug on the draw-head of the coupler to guide 7 the draw-head in its longitudinal movement and to permit the draw-head to swing laterally or horizontally on the vertical pivot, which pivotally connects its short pivot-lug or ear with the front end of the draw-strap or yoke. By this means the draw-bar or long shank of the coupler head is entirely dispensed with, thus materially diminishing the weight and cost of the coupler, and the drawsprings, followers, and side plates or stopcastings of the draft-rigging are all brought near the front end of the car, thus making the draft appliance as a whole very compact and greatly increasing its strength and eflicieney, while at the same time affording am- 5 ple room or space between the front sill and the transom or body-bolster of the car-frame for the draft appliance and for its proper construction with any number of tandem-arranged springs that maybe desired.

My invention also consists in the novel construction of parts and devices and in the novel combinations of parts and devices herein shown or described.

In the accompanying drawings, forming a 95 part of this specification, Figure l is a side elevation, partly in section, of a draft appliance embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is a vertical cross-section on line 2 2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a plan view, partly in horizontal section, showing some of the parts broken away; and Fig. 4 is a cross-section on line 4: 4: of Fig. 1.

In the drawings, A A are the center sills or draft-sills of a car, to which the side plates or stop-castings B B are secured. A is the front sill, and A the carry-iron.

C is the coupler, the same being of the ordinary Master Oar-Builders type and having the customary draw-head C, pivoted knuckle C knuckle pivot-pin C and lock G". D is the strap or yoke, E E tandem arranged springs, and F F F F the followers.

The side plates or stop-castings B have front stops or shoulders b for the front follower to abut against, and middle stops or shoulders I) b for the two middle followers to abut against, and a rear stop or shoulder 6 for the rear follower to abut against, and are each furnished at its front end with a curved or rounded guide or bearing 6* to engage the pivot lug or ear C of the draw-head C, and thus guide the draw-head in its longitudinal movement and also limit the lateral or horizontally swinging movement of the drawhead on the vertical pivot, by which it is connected to the front end of the draw-strap or yoke D. The curved or rounded guides or bearings 5* on the side plates or stop-castings B extend to the front ends of the side plates or stop-castings and to the front end of the car.

The draw-head C of the coupler instead of having the customary long shank or draw-bar is provided simply with a short pivot ear or lug (J and pivot-holes C in its upper and lower webs C G to receive the vertical pivotpin D, by which the strap or yoke D is pivotally connected at its front end to the drawhead.

The draw-bar strap or yoke D bears at its looped or rear end (Z against the rear follower and is provided with an abutment-block d at its middle portion to bear against the two middle followers and with a filler-loop (Z at its front end to bear against the front follower F. The strap or yoke D is furnished at its pivot end with offsets or shoulders (Z to adapt its front or pivot end to enter between the upper and lower webs C C of the draw-head, and the filler-loop (Z is provided with similar offsets or shoulders (Z* to cause the same to snugly fit between the upper and lower limbs of the strap or yoke D, to which said fillerloop is secured by the vertical pivot-pin D, by which the strap or yoke is pivotally connected to the draw-head. The pivot lug or ear C of the draw-head fits between the upper and lower limbs of the filler-loop CF and is provided with a rounded or curved rear end 6Z5, which abuts directly against the filler-loop, and thus communicates bufiing strains on the draw-head directly to the front follower and relieves the pivot-pin D of a portion of the strain, while also permitting the coupler-head to swing or turn laterally or horizontally on its vertical pivot, and for the same purpose the upper and lower limbs of the draw-strap or yoke D are also preferably furnished with curved or rounded ends (Z The draw-strap or yoke D extends through or in front of the carry-iron A and is pivotally connected to the draw-head in front of the carry-iron and the front or cross sill of the car, and this enables the draw-head to swing laterally or horizontally on its upright pivot freely within the limits prescribed by the curved guides or bearings I) at the front ends of the side plates or stop-castings B and also enables the draw-head, which is the part of the coupler liable to be broken and to require replacement, to be removed and replaced without taking down the draft-rigging or removing the lower guide straps or plates 6 of the side plates or stop-castings B.

I claim 1. In a draft-rigging for railway-cars, the combination with the center or draft sills of a car, of a pair of side plates or stop-castings secured thereto, having stops or shoulders for the followers to abut against, and provided at their front ends with rounded guides or bearings on their inner faces extending to the front end of the car, of a draw-strap or yoke, tandem springs and followers, and a coupler draw-head having a short pivot ear or lug pivotally connected to the front end of the draw-strap or yoke, substantially as specified.

2. The combination of center or draft sills of a car, tandem springs and followers, with side plates or stop-castings furnished with stops for the followers, and with rounded guides or bearings on'their inner faces at their front ends, of a draw-strap or yoke, and a coupler-head having a short pivot ear or lug pivotally connected to the front end of the draw-strap or yoke, substantially as specified.

3. The combination of center or draft sills of a car, tandem springs and followers, with side plates or stop-castings furnished with stops for the followers, and with rounded guides or bearings on their inner faces at their front ends, of a draw-strap or yoke, a coupler-head having a short pivot ear or lug pivotally connected to the front end of the draw-strap or yoke, and a filler-loop at the front end of the draw-strap or yoke and embracing said pivot-lug, substantially as specifiec.

4. The combination of center or draft sills of a car, tandem springs and followers, with side plates or stop-castings furnished with stops for the followers, and with rounded guides or bearings on their inner faces at their front ends, of a draw-strap or yoke, a coupler-head having a short pivot ear or lug pivotally connected to the front end of the draw-strap or yoke, and a filler-loop at the front end of the draw-strap or yoke and embracing said pivot-lug, said pivot-lug having a curved rear end, substantially as specified.

5. The combination with a car-frame, of side plates or stop-castings secured thereto and extending to the end of the car, and provided with guides or bearings on their inner faces at their front ends, of a spring and followers, a draw-strap or yoke having its front end projecting beyond the end of the car, and a coupler draw-head pivotally connected to the front end of said draw-strap or yoke, substantially as specified.

6. The combination with a car-frame, of side plates or stop-castings secured thereto and extending to the end of the car, and provided with guides or bearings on their inner faces at their front ends, of a spring and followers, a draw-strap or yoke having its front end projecting beyond the end of the car, and a coupler draw-head pivotally connected to the front end of said draw-strap or yoke, said draw-head having a short pivot or lug at its rear, substantially as specified.

7 The combination with a car-frame, of side plates or stop-castings secured thereto and extending to the end of the car, and provided with guides or bearings on their inner faces at their front ends, of a spring and followers, a draw-strap or yoke having its front end projecting beyond the end of the car, a coupler d raw-head pivotall y connected to the front end of said draw-strap or yoke, said draw-head havinga short pivot-lug at its rear, and a fillerloop at the front end of the draw-strap and embracing said pivot-lug, substantially as specified.

8. The combination with a car-frame,of side plates or stop-castings secured thereto extending to the front end of the car, and provided with rounded guides or bearings on their inner faces at their front ends, of a spring and followers, a draw-strap or yoke, and a coupler draw-head having a pivot-lug to which the front end of the draw-strap is pivotally connected, substantially as specified.

9. The combination with a car-frame, of side plates or stop-castings secured thereto ex tending to the front end of the car, and provided with rounded guides or bearings on their inner faces at their front ends, of a spring and followers, a draw-strap or yoke, and a coupler draw-head having a pivot-lug to which the front end of the draw-strap is pivotally connected, said pivot-lug having a rounded rear end, substantially as specified.

YVILLIAM H. MINER.

Witnesses:

H. M. MUNDAY, EDMUND ADCOCK. 

